英語(yǔ)四六級(jí)閱讀理解

1、四級(jí)第二套SectionCPassageOneQuestions57to61arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Acrosstherichworld,well-educatedpeopleincreasinglyworklongerthantheless-skilled.Some65%ofAmericanmenaged62-74withaprofessionaldegreeareintheworkforce,comparedwith32%ofmenwithonlyahigh-schoolcertificate.Thisgapispartofadeepeningdivid

2、ebetweenthewell-educatedwell-offandtheunskilledpoor.Rapidtechnologicaladvancehasraisedtheincomesofthehighlyskilledwhilesqueezingthoseoftheunskilled.Theconsequences,forindividualsandsociety,areprofound.Theworldisfacinganastonishingriseintheofoldpeople,andtheywilllivelongerthaneverbefore.Overthenext20

3、yearstheglobalpopulationofthoseaged65ormorewillalmostdouble,from600millionto1.1billion.Theexperienceofthe20thcentury,whengreaterlongevity(長(zhǎng)壽)translatedintomoreyearsinretirementratherthanmoreyearsatwork,haspersuadedmanyobserversthatthisshiftwillleadtoslowereconomicgrowth,whiletheswellingranksofpensio

4、nerswillcreategovernmentbudgetproblems.Butthenotionofasharpdivisionbetweentheworkingyoungandtheidleoldmissesanewtrend,thegrowinggapbetweentheskilledandtheunskilled.Employmentratesarefailingamongyoungerunskilledpeople,whereasolderskilledfolkareworkinglonger.ThedivideismostextremeinAmerica,wherewell-e

5、ducatedbaby-boomers(二戰(zhàn)后生育巔峰期出生的美國(guó)人)areputtingoffretirementwhilemanyless-skilledyoungerpeoplehaveabandonedpoliciesthatusedXtoretireearly.Risinglifeexpectancy(預(yù)期生命),combinedwiththereplace-Xpensionplanswithlessgenerousdefined-contributionones,meansthateventhebetter-offmustworklongertohaveacomfortablere

6、tirement.Butthechangingnatureofworkalsoplaysabigrole.Payhasrisensharplyforthehighlyeducated,andthosepeoplecontinuetoreaprichrewardsintooldagebecausethesedaystheeducatedelderlyaremoreproductivethattheprecedinggeneration.Technologicalchargemaywellreinforcethatshift;theskillsthatcomplementcomputers,fro

7、mmanagementknowhowtocreativity,donotnecessarilydeclinewithage.57.WhatishappeningintheworkforceinrichcountriesA.Youngerpeoplearereplacingtheelderly.B.Well-educatedpeopletendtoworklonger.C.Unemploymentratesarerisingyearafteryear.D.Peoplewithnocollagedegreedonoteasilyfindwork.【答案】B58.Whathashelpeddeepe

8、nthedividebetweenthewell-offandthepoorA.Longerlifeexpectancies.B.Arapidtechnologicaladvance.C.Profoundchangesintheworkforce.D.Agrowingnumberofthewell-educated.【答案】B59.Whatdomanyobserverspredictinviewoftheexperienceoftheexperienceofthe20thcenturyA.Economicgrowthwillslowdown.B.Governmentbudgetswillinc

9、rease.C.Morepeoplewilltrytopursuehighereducation.D.Therewillbemorecompetitioninthejobmarket.【答案】A60.WhatistheresultofpolicychangesinEuropeancountriesA.Unskilledworkersmaychoosetoretireearly.B.Morepeoplehavetoreceivein-servicetraining.C.Evenwealthypeoplemustworklongertolivecomfortablyinretirement.D.P

10、eoplemaybeabletoenjoygenerousdefined-benefitsfrompensionplans.【答案】C61.Whatischaracteristicofworkinthe21stcenturyA.Computerswilldomorecomplicatedwork.B.Morewillbetheeducatedyoung.C.Mostjobstobedonewillbecreativeones.D.Skillsarehighlyvaluedregardlessofage.【答案】DPassageTwoQuestions62to65arebasedonthefol

11、lowingpassage.Someoftheworldsmostsignsignificantproblemshitheadlines.Oneexamplecomesfromagriculture.Foodriotsandhungermakenews.Butthetrendlyingbehindthesemattersisrarelytalkedabout.Thisisthedeclineinthegrowthinyieldsofsomeoftheworldsmajorcrops.AnewstudybytheUniversityofMinnesotaandMcGillUniversityin

12、Montreallooksatwhere,andhowfar,thisdeclineisoccurring.Theauthorstakeavastnumberofdatapointsforthefourmostimportantcrops:rice,wheat,cornandsoyabeans(大豆).Theyfindthatonbetween24%and39%ofallharvestedareas,theimprovementinyieldsthattookplacebeforethe1980ssloweddowninthe1990sand2000s.Therearetwoworryingf

13、eaturesoftheslowdown.Oneisthatithasbeenparticularlysharpintheworldsmostpopulous(人口多的)countries,IndiaandChina.Theirabilitytofeedthemselveshasbeenanimportantsourceofrelativestabilitybothwithinthecountriesandonworldfoodmarkets.Thatself-sufficiencycannotbetakenforgrantedifyieldscontinuetoslowdownorrever

14、se.Second,yieldgrowthhasbeenlowerinwheatandricethanincornandsoyabeans.Thisisproblematicbecausewheatandricearemoreimportantasfoods,accountingforaroundhalfofallcaloriesconsumed.Cornandsoyabeansaremoreimportantasfeedgrains.Theauthorsnotethatwehavepreferentiallyfocusedourcropimprovementeffortsonfeedinga

15、nimalsandcarsratherthanoncropsthatfeedpeopleandarethebasisoffoodsecurityinmuchoftheworld.Thereportqualifiesthemoreoptimisticfindingsofanothernewpaperwhichsuggeststhattheworldwillnothavetodigupalotmorelandforfarminginordertofeed9billionpeoplein2050,astheFoodandAgricultureOrganisationhasargued.Instead

16、,itsays,thankstoslowingpopulationgrowth,landcurrentlyploughedupforcropsmightbeabletorevert(回返)toforestorwilderness.Thiscouldhappen.Thetroubleisthattheforecastassumescontinuedimprovementsinyields,whichmaynotactuallyhappen.62.WhatdoestheauthortrytodrawattentiontoA.Foodriotsandhungerintheworld.B.Thedec

17、lineofthegrainyieldgrowth.C.Newsheadlinesintheleadingmedia.D.Thefoodsupplyinpopulouscountries.【答案】B63.WhydoestheauthormentionIndiaandChinainparticularA.Theirself-sufficiencyisvitaltothestabilityofworldfoodmarkets.B.Theirfoodyieldshavebeguntorecentyears.decreasesharplyinC.Theirbigpopulationsarecausin

18、gworldwideconcerns.D.Theirfoodself-sufficiencyhasbeentakenforgranted.【答案】A64.WhatdoesthenewstudybythetwouniversitiesrecentcropimprovementeffortssayaboutA.Theyfailtoproducethesameremarkablebeforethe1980s.resultsasB.Theycontributealottotheimprovementofhumanfoodproduction.C.Theyplayamajorroleinguarante

19、eingthefoodsecurityoftheworld.D.theyfocusmoreontheincreaseofanimalfeedthanhumanfoodgrains.【答案】D65.WhatdoestheFoodandAgricultureOrganisationsayaboutworldfoodproductioninthecomingdecadesA.Thegrowingpopulationwillgreatlyincreasethepressureonworldfoodsupplies.B.Theoptimisticpredictionaboutfoodproduction

20、shouldbeviewedwithcaution.C.Theslowdownofthegrowthinyieldsofmajorfoodcropswillbereversed.D.Theworldwillbeabletofeeditspopulationwithoutincreasingfarmland.【答案】D66.HowdoestheauthorviewtheargumentoftheFoodandAgricultureOrganisationA.Itisbuiltonthefindingsofanewstudy.B.Itisbasedonadoubtfulassumption.C.I

21、tisbackedbystrongevidence.D.Itisopentofurtherdiscussion.【答案】B四級(jí)第一套SectionCPassageOneQuestion57to61arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Ifyouthinkahigh-factorsunscreen(防曬霜)keepsyousafefromharmfulrays,youmaybewrong.ResearchinthisweeksNatureshowsthatwhilefactor50reducesthenumberofmelanomas(黑瘤)anddelaystheiroc

22、currence,itcantpreventthem.Melanomasarethemostaggressiveskincancers.Youhaveahigherriskifyouhaveredorblondhair,fairskin,blueorgreeneyes,orsunburneasily,orifacloserelativehashadone.Melanomasaremorecommonifyouhaveperiodicintenseexposuretothesun.Otherskincancersareincreasinglylikelywithlong-termexposure

23、.Thereiscontinuingdebateastohoweffectivesunscreenisinreducingmelanomastheevidenceisweakerthanitisforpreventingothertypesofskincancer.A2011Australianstudyof1,621peoplefoundthatpeoplerandomlyselectedtoapplysunscreendailyhadhalftherateofmelanomasofpeoplewhousedcreamasneeded.Asecondstudy,comparing1,167p

24、eoplewithmelanomasto1,101whodidnthavethecancer,foundthatusingsunscreenroutinely,alongsideotherprotectionsuchashats,longsleevesorstayingintheshade,didgivesomeprotection.Thisstudysaidotherformsofsunprotectionnotsunscreenseemedmostbeneficial.Thestudyreliedonpeoplerememberingwhattheyhaddoneovereachdecad

25、eoftheirlives,soitsnotentirelyreliable.Butitseemsreasonabletothinksunscreengivespeopleafalsesenseofsecurityinthesun.Manypeoplealsodontusesunscreenproperly-applyinginsufficientamounts,failingtoreapplyafteracoupleofhoursandstayinginthesuntoolong.Itissunburnthatismostworrying-recentshowsfiveepisodesofs

26、unburnintheteenageyearsincreasestheriskofallskincancers.Thegoodnewsisthatacombinationofsunscreenandcoveringupcanreducemelanomarates,asshownbyAustralianfiguresfromtheirslip-slop-slapcampaign.Soifthereisaheatwavethissummer,itwouldbebestforus,too,tosliponashirt,slopon(抹上)sunscreenandslaponahat.57.【題干】W

27、hatispeoplescommonexpectationofahigh-factorsunscreenA.Itwilldelaytheoccurrenceofskincancer.B.Itwillprotectthemfromsunburn.C.Itwillkeeptheirskinsmoothandfair.D.Itwillworkforpeopleofanyskincolor.【答案】B【題干】WhatdoestheresearchinNaturesayaboutahigh-factorsunscreenA.Itisineffectiveinpreventingmelanomas.B.I

28、tisineffectiveincaseofintensesunlight.C.Itisineffectivewithlong-termexposure.D.Itisineffectiveforpeoplewithfairskin.【答案】C59.【題干】Whatdowelearnfromthe2011Australianstudyof1,621peopleA.Sunscreenshouldbeappliedalongsideotherprotectionmeasures.B.High-riskpeoplebenefitthemostfromtheapplicationofsunscreen.

29、C.Irregularapplicationofsunscreendoeswomenmoreharmthangood.D.Dailyapplicationofsunscreenhelpsreducetheincidenceofmelanomas.【答案】D60.【題干】WhatdoestheauthorsayaboutthesecondAustralianstudyA.Itmisleadspeopletorelyonsunscreenforprotection.B.Ithelpspeopletoselectthemosteffectivesunscreen.C.Itisnotbasedondi

30、rectobservationofthesubjects.D.ItconfirmstheresultsofthefirstAustralianstudy.【答案】D61.【題干】WhatdoestheauthorsuggesttoreducemelanomaratesA.Usingbothcoveringupandsunscreen.B.Stayingintheshadewheneverpossible.C.Usingcoveringupinsteadofsunscreen.D.Applyingtherightamountofsunscreen.【答案】APassageTwoQuestions

31、62to65arebasedonthefollowingpassage.Acrosstherichworld,well-educatedpeopleincreasinglyworklongerthantheless-skilled.Some65%ofAmericanmenaged62-74withaprofessionaldegreeareintheworkforce,comparedwith32%ofmenwithonlyahigh-schoolcertificate.Thisgapispartofadeepeningdividebetweenthewell-educatedwell-off

32、andtheunskilledpoor.Rapidtechnologicaladvancehasraisedtheincomesofthehighlyskilledwhilesqueezingthoseoftheunskilled.Theconsequences,forindividualsandsociety,areprofound.Theworldisfacinganastonishingriseinthenumberofoldpeople,andtheywilllivelongerthaneverbefore.Overthenext20yearstheglobalpopulationof

33、thoseaged65ormorewillalmostdouble,from600millionto1.1billion.Theexperienceofthe20thcentury,whengreaterlongevity(長(zhǎng)壽)translatedintomoreyearsinretirementratherthanmoreyearsatwork,haspersuadedmanyobserversthatthisshiftwillleadtoslowereconomicgrowth,whiletheswellingranksofpensionerswillcreategovernmentbu

34、dgetproblems.Butthenotionofasharpdivisionbetweentheworkingyoungandtheidleoldmissesanewtrend,thegrowinggapbetweentheskilledandtheunskilledpeople,whereasolderskilledfolkareworkinglonger.ThedivideismostextremeinAmerica,wherewell-educatedbaby-boomers(二戰(zhàn)后生育巔峰期出生的美國(guó)人)areputtingoffretirementwhilemanyless-s

35、killedyoungerpeoplehavedroppedoutoftheworkforce.Policyispartlyresponsible.ManyEuropeangovernmentshaveabandonedpoliciesthatusedtoencouragepeopletoretireearly.Risinglifeexpectancy(預(yù)期壽命),combinedwiththereplacementofgenerousdefined-benefitpensionplanswithlessgenerousdefined-contributionones,meansthateve

36、nthebetter-offmustworklongertohaveacomfortableretirement.Butthechangingnatureofworkalsoplaysabigrole.Payhasrisensharplyforthehighlyeducated,andthosepeoplecontinuetoreaprichrewardsintooldagebecausethesedaystheeducatedelderlyaremoreproductivethantheprecedinggeneration.Technologicalchangemaywellreinfor

37、cethatshift:theskillsthatcomplementcomputers,frommanagementknowhowtocreativity,donotnecessarilydeclinewithage.【題干】WhatishappeningintheworkforceinrichcountriesA.Youngerpeoplearereplacingtheelderly.B.Well-educatedpeopletendtoworklonger.C.Unemploymentratesarerisingyearafteryear.D.Peoplewithnocollegedeg

38、reedonoteasilyfindwork.【答案】B【題干】Whathashelpeddeepenthedividebetweenthewell-offandthepoorA.Longerlifeexpectancies.B.Profoundchangesintheworkforce.C.Arapidtechnologicaladvance.D.Agrowingnumberofthewell-educated.【答案】C【題干】Whatdomanyobserverspredictinviewoftheexperienceofthe20thcenturyA.Economicgrowthwil

39、lslowdown.B.Governmentbudgetswillincrease.C.Morepeoplewilltrytopursuehighereducation.D.Therewillbemorecompetitioninthejobmarket.【答案】A65.【題干】WhatistheresultofpolicychangesinEuropeancountriesA.Unskilledworkersmaychoosetoretireearly.B.Morepeoplehavetoreceivein-servicetraining.C.Evenwealthypeoplemustworklongertolivecomfortablyinretirement.D.Peoplemaybeabletoenjoygenerousdefined-benefitsfrompensionplans.【答案】C66.【題干】Whatischaracteristicofworkinthe21stcenturyA.Co